to expect a proper apology fro Mothercare for appalling service

[ChrisandChristina]

I have vowed never to use Mothercare again.

A sales assistant was so rude to my wife in their Brighton shop that she was reduced to tears.

The manager was useless when I complained to her and simply waffled on about investigating the incident I.E standard meaningless management speak

When I complained in writing to Mothercare customer services they sent us a £15 gift card to 'offset our disapointment'.... what an insult.

I will never spend another penny with them.

Just wondered if this was common for them and what experiences other people had had there.

[queencat]

I've got three words in response to this and personally I hate it when people do what I'm about too.......

Earthquake in japan.

[queencat]

Or is it earth quake in japan - so four words?

[Georgimama]

If you hate it too don't do it queencat. It's smug and self righteous and annoying, and you could post that response to every single thread on MN and every other message board on the internet if so minded.

[SoupDragon]

I must remember to post something equally dumb on any thread you start, queencat.

[threadsoffeeling]

why wont this thread disappear and just die?

[Georgimama]

Because people keep posting on it. As you just did. Do you not understand active convos?

You can hide it if it bothers you.

[queencat]

Thanks soup usually i post about wanting help because I have crippling depression due to my partner leaving me with our three children to go off with a twenty something year old. Or about my cutting my arms and legs to help get through it.

I was just trying to point out that there sometimes things need to be put into perspective.

[Georgimama]

You really are queen of passive aggression, aren't you? Christ.

[SoupDragon]

Well, at least you're not in japan as well eh?

My H left me pregnant with our third child to go shag some tart so [shrug]

Doesn't make it right to post stupid self-righteous nonsense does it?

[Gemsy83]

SeeJane- I didnt call the OP and his wife a tit for expecting professionalism blah blah whatever- I called them a pair of tits for their hysterical overeaction about not getting their own way about a top. Its ridiculously juvenile and im just that so many people pander to this shit

[Janefeelsold]

You see, I read his post as if he was mad that he didn't get an apology and that the SA wasn't more professional. I don't think he was that bothered about the top, more her attitude.

I think he got worked up about the principle of the thing. I can see where he's coming from on that. I get like that too (though personally, I'd extract revenge cold by going back later, getting them to ring up lots of stuff-make it awkward by choosing stuff with missing tags etc, ask lots of queries, have them running around then change my mind and leave.) This would serve no purpose other than to make me feel better for the previous bad service.

If it was me and they said I could have a grovelling apology for lack of professionalism and courtesy or a £500 gift voucher, I'd want the grovelling apology every time.

If she'd not articulate and intelligent enough to diplomatically deal with a customer query over price then she's in the wrong job.

[Gemsy83]

Wooops Janefeelsold (wrong Jane sorry).

She is in a tuppeny ha-penny minimum wage job where she has to feel the daily wrath of know all, never wrong, can be as rude as they like and she should nod and agree or she's in the wrong job type customers. Shes not a doctor or lawyer- she is a sales assistant and probably had enough off crap that day and flipped. There could have been 10 pompous gits before the OP and his whole drama queen family rocked up and she'd had enough. Sales assistants are shockingly also HUMAN

[confuddledDOTcom]

I'd never have got away with anything less than professionalism as a Saturday girl earning less than £2 an hour. I remember being out with my then BF doing deliveries, he got back in the car looking shaken, someone had pulled a gun on him because they didn't like their order! They beat us back to the shop (because we had other deliveries to do) and we still had to treat them politely and deal with their concern.

I should point out we also locked ourselves in ourside and called the police but we still replaced their order and treated them politely.

[Janefeelsold]

Well, we'll have to agree to disagree.

I don't think her salary has anything to do with it unless at interview she told them that for minimum wage they could only expect her to be polite to customers for half the day.

My DH is a lawyer. He has to put up with shit all day too. I'm quite sure if he started acting all stroppy and unprofessional just because every client that day has been a PITA, he'd soon be in trouble.

If you're going to work in customer service then you need to be polite, diplomatic and professional otherwise, yes, I think you should be doing something else.

[Janefeelsold]

Oh and he's had pregnant colleagues spat at and groped and they've generally got to treat it at part of the job. They don't like it but they get on with it as it's their job to do so.

[AmazingBouncingFerret]

Hang on confuddled, have I got this right... He pulled a gun on your colleague yet you still treated them politely??

I have no words. Do you really think that staff in a customer driven environment should put up with that sort of behaviour?

One customer in my shop only had to threaten a member of staff that he was going to break his legs and I had him thrown out in less than minutes. Whether he was going to buy anything or not the safety of staff is more important than a sale.

[confuddledDOTcom]

When they turned up at the shop they didn't have the gun, but they were getting nasty so we wanted to get them dealt with quickly and we were locked in our side so they couldn't do much.

I've had plenty of stroppy customers and we were always polite. What went on when they couldn't see is a different matter, it taught me the greatest respect for people who cook my food...

[Gemsy83]

A lawyer IS a profession ffs Jane- you really EXPECT a sales assistant earning shit all to just shut the hell up and stand for crap off those with over inflated senses of self worth? I really do have to laugh when people try to compare lawyers/doctors etc with shop assistants/cafe workers and try to imply they should all act the same!

[Gemsy83]

Oh and he's had pregnant colleagues spat at and groped and they've generally got to treat it at part of the job. They don't like it but they get on with it as it's their job to do so.

Well thats fine then- next time I dont get my own way in a shop I am more than entitled to chuck a hissy fit and reduce the shop assistant to tears because after all others put up with worse... really im astonished.

[HowsTheSerenity]

Well the worst experience I had there was when I was buying baby clothes for my sister and the salesperson asked me if I was pregnant! No I was not pregnant just fat but I did take great pleasure in making the woman running away in shame.

[AmazingBouncingFerret]

Whether you are a sales assistant/cleaner/doctor/lawyer or whatever. If you earn £6 an hour of £60 nobody deserves to be spat at/groped or verbally abused.

I can see now Confuddled that you were obviously scared and you dealt with the situation as best you or anyone could. But you didnt have to treat them politely and serve them because it was your job. It was way above and beyond the expected, it must of been very scary.

[skydance]

So you arrived at the shop chris to discover that the tops were no longer part of the 3 for 2 deal and for some reason your wife was almost in tears over this (really not sure why )

But anyway surely you could see that your wife was being over-emotional and diffused the situation by saying 'oh just get them anyway christina, you need them' , that would have been a much better way of supporting your wife than escalting everything.

And actually I think you were lucky to get the £15 giftcard.

[theyoungvisiter]

I am completely gobsmacked at the idea that accepting a wage (basic or otherwise) somehow strips away your humanity and gives a client the right to abuse you!

Confuddled - there is absolutely no WAY that customer deserved anything other than criminal prosecution. The fact that they were a customer has nothing to do with it.

Being a customer does NOT give you a license to treat people like shit and being a sales person does not mean you have take dreadful treatment and suck it up. You deserve to treated with respect no matter what job you work in - we don't live in a serf-economy thank god.

[theyoungvisiter]

And yes I realise that there are some jobs which involve working with very disturbed or violent people, and that coping with and addressing their behaviour may very well form part of your job - but being appropriately equipped and supported to deal with disturbing behaviour is totally different to expecting a shop assistant to deal with gun violence with a smile.

[myredcardigan]

Everyone desrves to be treated with respect and feel safe in the workplace.

I'm not sure I agree that lawyers and doctors should expect to take more crap due to their salary though.
I would expect the sales staff to be equally as polite and professional as the GP.